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Friday, February 8, 2013

February Goals

The whole month of January has already flown by and February is already 25% gone. As far as I am concerned, the days can keep flying by so spring will be here soon. Punxsutawney Phil didn't see his shadow so our early spring should be here soon, right? I won't hold my breath or I might suffocate. Especially since Phil predicted our "early" spring last Saturday and yesterday we got about 5 inches of snow.

I completely missed recapping my December goals or setting new January goals in January. Blaming it on the post-Christmas sugar/carb-induced fog seems like a good idea at this point. Only one resolution managed to make it through my rigorous weeding out process (mostly consisting off me decided that it is too hard to complete) this year, and that resolution is - giving up pop. Except for that long island ice tea I had on January 1 at 1:00 am that included a splash of Coke, I am doing excellent. And I think that splash of Coke hardly counts because I hadn't even made the resolution yet. Matt doubts I will be able to nix pop for an entire year and predicts I will give into a Diet Mountain Dew right after my first big race of the year. Although that is probably my top favorite post-race drink, I am trying to abstain. Cutting out something completely for me is so much easier than trying to do something in moderation. Gretchen Rubin wrote a great post on this in her Happiness Project Blog.

Let's recap December goals.

Goal 1. Keep a gratitude journal. Done!
Even if it took me over two months to come up with 26 things to be thankful for, I am still considering this goal complete. It was a fun exercise, but I just don't remember to write something down that I am grateful for every day.

Goal 2. Make Christmas cards. Done!
My Christmas cards were pretty awesome if I do say so myself. I've had this great idea for cards for about two years now. The joke is that I don't have any children or pets to send pictures of so I just sent pictures of myself. The responses I got were great as well. Cue brainstorming for a 2013 Christmas card now!

Goal 3. Finish at least one craft project. Done!
I finished up my scrapbook from 1999. Okay, maybe not that long ago, but it feels like it has been dragging on forever. In high school and college, I loved scrapbooking, but now it just feels like a waste of time. Maybe it will be nice to look back at those pictures someday in the future, but for now I am hanging up my scrapbooking hat.

There is still a started crocheting project sitting on my couch. No progress has been made on that for at least a month. Meh.Goal 4. Clean off dining room table. Done!
Then undone, then redone. This cycle will probably continue forever. The table is the first surface I come across once I walk in the door and all my stuff gets dumped there. The thought was once it was clean, I would have an easier time keeping it clean. This rings somewhat true, but it too easily gets piled with stuff again.

After.

Goal 1. Spend out on vacation.
I finished The Happiness Project in December and this goal is another pull from that book. Spend out to become rich. This doesn't necessarily apply to money, but to using your best/new things. Don't hoard all the good stuff till it's too late. By spending out, you can also create more. I am going to apply this principle while I am on vacation starting tomorrow (Park City, Utah)!! I have been saving for this vacation for quite a while now and have put plenty of money away for it.

When Matt and I took trips in college, we stayed at the cheapest hotels and packed many of our meals. Now we have jobs and don't need to take the cheapest option. My goal is to not worry about the cost of everything while I'm on vacation. I'm not going to blow hundreds of dollars on dinner, but I don't need to order the cheapest option on the menu. I am going to enjoy my time there because I don't know when I will be back.Goal 2. Use the foam roller after every run.
Foam roller has been feeling neglected lately. And my calves have been letting me know. And bonus! When I use it more frequently, the urge to cry or scream out in pain greatly decreases. Stretching and foam rolling are becoming even more important as my weekly and long run mileage increase every week. If I want to make it to this marathon healthy, then this is an absolute must.

Goal 3. Get back in the pool.
A swimming pool. That thing I haven't stepped foot in since probably October (possibly earlier). Another half-Ironman is in the works for this summer and I definitely want to improve my swimming. The best time to work on form is in the off-season before I start a training plan. Time to start putting in some laps.

Goal 4. Ski one whole day in Park City without falling over.
Seriously might be the most challenging goal this month. I consider myself an intermediate skier. Certainly not great, but I do manage to ski some black diamond (supposedly Expert-level) runs. Mostly because Matt insists I will be able to do it, and once you are at the top of a run the best way to get down is to ski it. Falling seems to be a necessity for me once a day though and sometimes it happens at the most basic times. Like when I am standing at the bottom of a run and randomly fall over (it's happened more than once). I want to ski one day without falling down. One day.

When we were on a trip a few years ago, I made it through about 95% of the day and then fell over when trying to stop or something.